


Human clad Monsters

by vampirekiki



Series: Human clad Monsters [1]
Category: Angelo (Band), D'espairsRay, Jrock
Genre: Horror, M/M, Mystery, Supernatural Elements, Suspense
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-27
Updated: 2015-08-07
Packaged: 2018-03-19 20:46:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 20,284
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3623739
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vampirekiki/pseuds/vampirekiki
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Hizumi noticed his friend's unexplained sudden change of behaviors.....</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Human clad Monsters Prologue

**Author's Note:**

  * For [kusakanmuri](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=kusakanmuri).



> Note: It's a gift to kusakanmuri! At frist I wanted to make this story a crossover between Don't Look Now and Dario Argento's Do You Like Hitchcock?, but then changed my mind to make it a...well, not so very original story, please bear with me.  
> Note2: Let me tell you one thing here, I'm so NOT doing love triangle, so please kindly keep your love triangle suggestion to yourself.

Prologue

Hizumi stood before the apartment building, then looked up starting at the tall, narrow building before him. Rows of windows came into his view like various pairs of blank eyes. From where he stood the young man could see no light coming through the windows, nor did he hear any noise cased by human's activity. In fact, the entire building seemed deserted, _unwelcoming_ in a gray, cloudy afternoon like this.

The gloomy sight of the apartment building before him and its surrounding did nothing to light Hizumi's mood, nor lesser the worry in his heart, but the dark haired man knew he couldn't back down now. After all, he was here for a reason.

With no one else in sight and the building's entrance left empty, unguarded before him, Hizumi made his way into the lobby. Things still didn't improve much inside the apartment building, everywhere he looked, all the deep brown haired teen could see included worn wallpaper that peeled back, uneven floor and the darkened staircase nearby. The few light bulbs above head were dim and unsteady, causing shadows to linger around the corners.

Ignoring the growing discomfort, Hizumi entered the elevator and pressed the button to the 14th floor. He was here to visit a friend, and he refused to be discouraged by the unwelcoming sight he'd encountered, and his own impulsive sense of grimness. 

He was on his way up, straight to his friend's apartment and knock on the door, though his visit was entirely unannounced and uninvited. 

Honestly speaking, it wasn't his fault he was forced to pay his friend this surprise visit, but the friend in question, Karyu, one of his very best friends, had left him little choice.

Truth be told, Hizumi hadn't seen his friend for days. No, in order to be particular, an entire week had passed since the last time Hizumi saw his friend.

The two of them were close, being friends for years meant they knew each other well and had long used to hang out with each other, all the time. Therefore the fact that Hizumi hadn't seen Karyu, or heard anything from the other man for so long a time, made him worry for his friend's well-being, suspecting something was not alright with the latter. 

A week ago, when Karyu failed to show up in one of their hanging out section, without even making a phone call to call off their gathering;  Hizumi became concern, immediately he tried to contact Karyu through the phone but all of his calls went unanswered. 

As it turned out, Hizumi wasn't the only one to have lost contact with the blond haired man. A few days later, he asked a handful of their mutual friends, but the same like him, they hadn't seen Karyu showing up anywhere, no one had heard anything from the blond neither.   

With all those thoughts in his mind, Hizumi waited for the elevator to stop at the 14th floor, then he walked along the hallway, heading toward where he knew Karyu's apartment was. 

The sound of his own footsteps echoed around him, the further he walked, the more Hizumi became aware of how utterly quiet his surrounding was. The brown head  frowned, he had visited Karyu's neighborhood for various times, but the apartment building had always been filled with all kind and manner of noise: people talking among themselves in the lobby, television programs, housewives scolding their kids, the vague sound of household's activities behind doors etc. But today, as unsettling as it was, all of those sound was eerily _missing_. Now there was only silence filling up every single space. 

Hizumi shivered at the thought, he couldn't help wondering what was with his friend this time. Was Karyu to busy to contact any of his friends? No, it didn't seem likely. 

Was it possible that Karyu had simply left town for the time being? Still it wasn't likely for his friend to just leave without telling any of his friends. Karyu wasn't that kind of person.

So did Karyu get ill, sick enough he couldn't leave his home nor answer the phone? Or was it something else even _more_ ominous than this?

Swallowing a lump back down his throat uneasily, the slim youth crossed the remaining short distance between him and his friend's apartment. In no time at all he was right in front of the door. 

For a long moment, Hizumi only stood there, he knew he was supposed to just knock the door and get rid of the suspense hanging heavily above his head. But......damn! Why would he be so nervous all of a sudden? As if...as if.......

As if he was afraid of what he might find behind that thin frame of door.

But that kind of thought was absurd, wasn't it? If he went ahead and knocked the door, he would only find either Karyu was at home, or he wasn't. There should be nothing else! Nothing to be nervous about!

Taking a deep breath, Hizumi raised his hand and knocked it against the door frame.

In the oppressive silence, the noise that echoed off the hallway was much louder than Hizumi had intended it to be.

When the echo of the knocks died down, silence once more filled the hallway. Everything was so very quiet, Hizumi could ever heard his own soft breathing clearly.  
For almost of full minute, the brown head tried his hardest to listen to any hint of movement from behind the door, but he heard nothing. His knocks were met with absolutely no response. 

The brown haired man tried knocking the door again. 

"Karyu kun? Are you home?" 

When there was still no response. Hizumi chose to call out, hoping to arouse his friend's attention-just in case the latter was really inside.

There was still no response. Clearly no one was rushing forward to answer the door any time soon. It was so quiet, indicating that the room behind the locked door before him was deserted, not a living thing was inside Karyu's home at the time being.

In fact, it felt like not only Karyu's home, the entire floor seemed to be deserted, voided of life, of any humanly presence.

 

The last two thoughts sent a shiver down Hizumi's spine. Suddenly he felt painfully alone, _exposed_. Unsafe.

 

Unconsciously, Hizumi took a step back, breathing in and out slowly to calm his nervousness. 

It was when he first noticed,  before he realized daytime had came to an end, the long dark shadows of night had already slipped into the long hallway.  

Finding himself alone in the middle of a darkening empty hallway, although it might sound a little foolish, but Hizumi's uneasiness only seemed to grow, adding to the worry which was there weighting him down. Why would the bad feeling lurked in his mind just wouldn't go away?

Why he had such a strong feeling--purely out of instinct, that something _bad_ might befall Karyu?

Quickly Hizumi shook his head, tried to get rid of the ominous sensation that was raising up from his inside again.

_Karyu's not here. It was no use staying..._

With that thought in his mind, the brown haired youth turned away from his friend's apartment door, ready to leave.

But all of his action came to a halt as he frozen at the sight of a dark figure standing just a few feet from him.

The figure stood motionlessly in the middle of the hallway, blocking his way.

With the sun long set below the horizon, with no light on and the long hallway still shrouded in the semi-darkness of dusk, the towering figure seemed to appeared out of no where.

And Hizumi could swear _no one else was there just mere seconds earlier!_

He didn't hear the elevator's doors opening, he didn't hear any footfall, he didn't hear anyone approaching, in fact he didn't hear anything!

Hizumi went completely still, frozen at his spot as if he was roofed to the floor. All he could do was to stare at the other man in shock.

Only when the tall figure took another step forward, then did Hizumi manage to realize who was now standing before him.

It was someone who was familiar with, the one he was looking for.

_  
"--Karyu!?"  
_

to be continued.

That's for tonight! Comments are love!


	2. Human clad Monsters part 1

Part 1

 

Hizumi didn't know what to do. Although the person he was looking for---his best friend-- suddenly appeared in front of him, appearing to be just alright. Karyu's reappearance should have lessened his worry and make him relax a great deal, but right at this very moment the brown head was in shock, plus he felt even more uncertain other than relief.

"Karyu?"

He called his friend once more when the latter made absolutely no response, as though Karyu couldn't see him standing right here, nor could he hear him. Though the taller man stood there facing Hizumi, still the part of his face was hidden by shadows, making it difficult for Hizumi to see his expression clearly, nor could he look straight to his friend's eyes.

"--K--Karyu! Where had you been!?"

The taller one didn't reply. Silently, ignoring Hizumi's question, the blond slipped past his friend and headed to the door.

Hizumi could only stared at his friend's back with widened eyes as the latter unlocked the door, still without saying a word. Never before Karyu had treated him--or anyone else for the same matter,  with such aloofness.

It looked as if Karyu wasn't happy to see his friend,  didn't want him here, not at all.

Soon the door was pushed open, Karyu stepped into his apartment, without even a backward glance to his friend, still he left the door opened behind him. 

The frown between Hizumi's eyebrows deepened, even though the door was left open for him, still he couldn't recall had Karyu ever been so unwelcoming in the past.

Worry eventually drowned out the annoyance and displeasure in his heart, The brown head walked into the apartment. He was surprised to find himself surrounded by the same semi-darkness. Karyu didn't bother to turn the light on.

Right now, Karyu stood before the only pair of windows in the living room, which were opposite of the main entrance. The blond's silhouette was illuminated by the dim street light seeping faintly into the room, his form threw a long shadow across the room.

The shadow also fell upon Hizumi,leaving him alone and confused in the gathering darkness which was closing in on him. 

Hizumi did the only thing he could think of, he switched on the light. 

Instantly light poured into the small living room as shadows retreating back to the far corners. For the first time Hizumi managed to see his friend clearly under the lamplight. Karyu's face was still turned away from him, facing the windows.

Hizumi noticed how pale his friend appeared to be, and he also looked.....worn, his shoulders hanged low as if invisible weight pressed against them.

The brown haired man moved slowly across the dim room, somehow he had an urge to get closer to his friend. 

In this very moment Karyu looked unwell, cold, lonely, sad. Hizumi couldn't help wanting to do---say something to make him feel better. At least he must try.

He was only a few feet away from the blond when he saw the latter shifted, his face turning slightly back.

"Why are you here?"

Karyu asked in an impassive tone, his voice thin and strange, fainting slowly fainting into the air around them.

"W--Why am I here?" Hizumi groaned in disbelief. " Why am I here, you asked? What's the matter with _you_!? You'd been basically missing for a week! You made everyone worry!"

"That's nothing to be worried about!" Karyu turned sharply back to meet his friend's stare, his curled hair waving around his face due to the sudden movement. "I'm _fine_. Can you see that!?"

As the last echo of the blond's piercing voice died down, the room fell right back into silence.

Hizumi was utterly taken aback by such defensive response. He stared back at the blond in shock, his eyes fixed on Karyu's but there was no trace of familiarity could be found there. 

There was something not right about Karyu's eyes. They were still the same shape and the same dark brown color, but the... _expression_ in them just seemed to...look wrong, though Hizmui failed to pinpoint exactly what was that wrongness.

Not only Karyu was acting strangely out of character by hissing at his friend, the blond's once familiar eyes now reflecting nothing but smooth cold blackness, those eyes also looked much deeper than Hizumi had remembered.

Now he stood before Karyu in the small apartment, came face to face with his friend as the sky outside of the window steadily darkening, Hizumi suddenly felt like he didn't know the person who stood in front of him.

It was like you once thought you knew someone else well, and trusted him with all your heart; only to discover that person one day turned into a stranger, without any warning. Although it was still the same person on the outside, but deep down you could no longer be certain exactly who was there before you, not anymore.

The brown head didn't know what kind of expression he wore at that moment, but he could imagine it would be one of shock and astonishment.

Then something seemed to shift within Karyu's orbs and, for a moment, those eyes softened as the blond's unreadable expression turned to an upset, apologizing one.

"I'm sorry Hizumi, I--I shouldn't have said that." Karyu looked away, his head bowed low in embarrassment. He raised a hand before his face and pressed the tips of his fingers against his temple, murmuring. "I...I think, I'm just not feeling quite well--"

Hizumi released a breath he didn't know he was holding. At least now Karyu was reacting in a way which  felt...normal to him, at least the blond didn't act like some unfamiliar person. When the taller man uttered his name, Hizumi at least felt like it was the old Karyu he knew talking to him.

"It's alright......" The brown haired man shook his head, couldn't find it in him to continue being frustrated with Karyu once he apologized. "I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

To Hizumi's request, the taller man only replied it with a shrug, as if for some reason, it was difficult to give a clear answer. 

Karyu's back was still pressing firmly against the wall next to the windows, his muscle tensed beneath the shirt he wore; as though the blond was somehow nervous, uncomfortable in Hizumi's presence. As if he meant to keep his distance, wanted to be as far away from the shorter brown head as possible. And it didn't escape Hizumi's notice.

"So...see you then." Feeling as though he had already outstand his welcome, Hizumi eventually announced his farewell. 

"Yes, you should better go now."

Much to the shorter man's surprise, Karyu sounded almost like he couldn't wait for his best friend to be out of the door, as soon as possible.

_I should better go? What's that supposed to mean!?_

But the brown head didn't bother to utter these questions in his mind, nor did he have the heart of saying a 'goodbye' properly--not after having to endure Karyu's bewildering, distant attitude, before he headed back to the front door.

Even though he had seen with his own eyes Karyu was still in one piece, safely returned to his own home, Hizumi could not shrug off the unpleasant feeling that his friend wasn't himself, that there was something the blond had held back from him.

Before opening the front door, the brown head turned back to look at his friend's direction, perhaps he still hoped the other would say something. But the spot before the windows, where Karyu stood before, was now empty. 

to be continued.

It's 1am and I need to go to bed, comments are love and you know it!


	3. Human clad Monsters part 3

Part 2

Hizumi drew in a deep breath when he stepped out of the main entrance of the apartment building. The cool breeze that brushing past him was a welcomed change to the suppressing, stilled air within the building, still it failed to lighten his mood. 

The sidewalk was empty as he marched down the road, his fruitless quest frustrated him much more than he would had expected. It really felt like he came up with nothing, more questions, other than less, whirling around in his head.

The brown haired man could feel a headache forming within his skull as he walked further into a quieter, more shabby part of Karyu's neighborhood, its dull pain started hammering him steadily, the pain wasn't overwhelming--not yet, but Hizumi knew it was about to get worse soon. 

Sighing, his thought lingered back to Karyu and his eerie attitude, the distance the latter had put between them today. What could he do now? He merely wanted to help his best friend, but what could he possibly do when the blond had made it more than clear that his help wasn't needed?

His pace came to a sudden halt, leaving him stood still in the middle of the deserted sideway as a strange sensation shook him without warning.

So strong and alian a sensation it was, it sent a shiver ran down his spine, as veiled doubt slowly began to solidify into almost a certain _belief_. 

It was a sharp, pricking sensation of invisible eyes on him, of being watched.

He could swear he had felt it, the unmistakable presence of someone else, from somewhere behind him.

Someone was watching.

Someone he couldn't even start to imagine who he or she was, or what they motive might be.

Someone who didn't mean him any good.

Before he could stop himself, Hizumi was turning back sharply, his music tensed, ready to confront whichever person who stalked behind him. 

A gasp escaped his throat as he found himself facing an empty street. 

There was only a thin layer of grayish night fog hovering in the mid-air, slowly thickening as the night drew in.

The nervousness and dread which had wormed into his guts urged him to look harder, searching toward dark corners for any sign of suspicious movement---

But it didn't take long for him to realize no one else was there. Just as quickly as it had came, the unsettling presence of the other being was now... _gone_. Simply gone.

"Who's there!?"  Defeated, the brown head cried out to the empty streets surrounding him, but his voice sounded empty even to him. 

Unsurprisingly, he was met with silence.

Now he was truly alone, in the middle of a darkening street.

Hizumi quivered as if the temperature had suddenly dropped down, unconsciously wrapping his arms around himself as though it was a mean to protect himself. 

He turned back to the direction he'd originally heading toward, when he started to walk again he almost breaking into a run, as if he was chased by something unseen. 

to be continued.

This chapter is so short. Sorry if it looks like I'm cheating, but I'm having a writer's block now.=_=


	4. Human clad Monsters part 3

Part3

__

_-flashback-_

_It was supposed to be a night of music, fun and drinks, and this night was nearly over by now. Karyu was retreating to the backstage with the other musicians. The blond had been previously asked, by a friend of a friend, to perform in a club as a part time guest musician for a night. It was a club which offered live performance, and its customers obviously preferred rock music for their entertainment._

_It was around closing time when the crew gathered their instruments, then left the small stage. Then the small group went straight backstage, they chatted while picking their personal belongings in the dressing room._

_Back into the performers' room backstage, Karyu let out a sigh of relief. Their performance tonight had gone better than he'd dared hope. The performing crew, being called separately in the last minute by the club's manager, had little time for rehearsal; but much to Karyu's and the other crewmen's relief, the audience seemed to be well pleased._

_In the end, Karyu was the last one to leave. With the handle of his guitar case hanging loosely on his fingers, he headed toward the half-closing front entrance._

_The blond was only a few steps away from the front doors when he heard a voice from somewhere behind him, it said:_

_"Nice performance."_

_At first he didn't realize the comment was directed at him, so he had taken a few steps forward before halting, turning back hesitatingly to see who was talking._

_In the club's dim main hall, where most of the light had already been switched off, it took a good few seconds before Karyu managed to spot a black haired, darkly clad figure sitting on a stool where the remaining faint light could hardly reached, about eight or nine feet from where the blond stood._

_The guitarist didn't know what he had expected, maybe he'd unconsciously expected it to be a night shift's staff from the club, but when his eyes adjusted to the gloomy night inside the hall, he could tell the stranger before him was no staff._

_"Excuse me?"_

_Even though Karyu tried not to show it, but the presence of this man had caught him completely off guard. For he couldn't find any logical reason to explain why he'd failed to notice he wasn't the only one in the hall._

_The stranger remained in his own seat, then he greeted Karyu with a slightest of nod. His elbows rested against the narrow table behind him in a leisure manner. His expression could be placed everywhere between highly amazed and sheer boredom, unreadable._

_"I heard you guys played tonight. You're good." There was a hint of amusement in those cold dark eyes when the raven haired man said that matter of factly. His tone flat, with no trace of warmth in his deep voice._

_"You think so? Thank'y then..." Karyu could only give the stranger an awkward half smile in response. So far he still had no idea where this conversation was heading to, nor the man's intention._

_The blond knew as a musician he was above average, and his hard-earned experience had built a seasoned guitarist in him, other musicians also seemed to enjoy working with him--- but deep down, Karyu knew something was missing, something had always remained one or two steps out of his reach._

_"I mean it." Finally the raven head's lips curled upward to show hint of a smile, the cold amusement in his eyes only seemed to deepen. "You surely are_ good _."_

_This time Karyu was in loss of words, that guy couldn't be hitting on him, right?_

_Much to Karyu's uneasiness, the stranger--- so far neither of them had ever introduced themselves to one another; left his seat and moved smoothly toward him._

_Once the man stood up, Karyu was surprised to notice the raven head was actually shorter than him. He had, for some unknown reason, almost expecting him to be a taller person, more towering._

_Now the two men were face to face, but the shorter man showed no sign of stopping. In closer distance, Karyu also noticed how_ pale _the other man really was._

_However, Karyu didn't have time to think any further because in the next second the raven haired man took one more step, shortened the distance between them. Their bodies almost touching as the stranger leaned in to whispered next to his ear:  "But it just happens that I actually know how you can make your music brilliant. The way you want it to."_

_A slight gasp could be heard escaping the blond guitarist's mouth, immediately he took a step backward--an action he should have taken when this raven haired stranger closing in on him-- drawing a safe distance between himself and the strange man._

_He should have just turned away and left for good now, but instead Karyu found himself asking in a shaking voice. "What do you mean?"_

_The grin on the man's face widened, but it never quite reached his eyes._

_Instead of receiving a verb answer, the guitarist felt the sensation of cold, dry fingers touching his as a thick piece of paper was passed into his hand._

_Karyu looked down, he saw lying on his palm was actually a small card. There was no name upon it, but an address printed upon its white surface._

_"When you're ready to_ learn _, you know where to find me."_

_Instantly he looked up, but much to his shock, the other man wasn't there anymore._

_-end of flashback-  
_

to be continued.

Comments are love!


	5. Human clad Monsters part 4

Human-clad Monster Part 4

Karyu's apartment was now so utterly different from the place where Hizumi had visited just a few hours before.

Inside the apartment there was no lamplight being switched on, there was nothing but the weak streetlight through the windows, managed to keep the full darkness of midnight from pouring in.      

Under the semi darkness of nocturne, traces of chaos were still visible: pieces of furniture were overturned, a table being broken in half, curtains and clothes being reduced to mere rags, damaged personal belongings thrown everywhere; broken pieces of glass spread across the floor after a mirror was smashed against the wall. Suspicious wet stains could also be found on the surfaces of those broken furniture.

Outside, light footsteps could be heard echoing along the empty hallway, getting closer and closer, until it stopped right at Karyu's doorstep.

The door was unlocked; the handle of the front door was being turned slowly, seconds later the door was being slipped open to reveal a shadowy figure standing outside.

With a black colored hood on, most of this person's face was hidden in shadow. But he was pushing the door wide open now with steady handthe same hand which had just unlocked the front door even though he didn't possess the right key to said door. He never needed keys in order to enter places, nor did he need any invitation, not really.

Then the figure stepped inside before closing the door behind him. He was faced with a dim and utterly destroyed living room; the sight of it didn't seem to either surprise or disturb him.  

After all, he was here for a reason, the sight of an apartment being turned upside-down would not discouraged him. He had already seen worse, far worse than this.

Without a pause, he began to walk, making his way across the living roommindful not to step on the glass or the furniture-turned-garbage as he went, before he finally stood in front of the door to the bedroom.

There was no hint of light seeping through the tiny gap between the doorframe and the floor, not a sound from inside the room; not a hint to indicate someone was inside.

The shadowy figure stood still, he obviously was not in any hurry, nor was he anxious to knock on the door like Hizumi did. He simply stood there, waiting for somethinganything to happen, waiting for a sign.

He didn't have to wait long. A strange scratching noise could be heard from the other side of the wooden door, it sounded like someone turning, twisting in the bedroom.

A smirk crept its way to the corners of the man's lips. He knew he had just provoked an reaction. It was more than enough for him to know his presence was sensed and recognized.

Nighttime beasts always recognized one another, it was their nature, it was in their blood; this ability to sense one another when they got close enough.

If he wanted to, he could break this door down any time he wanted and forced whoever hidden inside to confront him, but instead of doing so, the dark figure only pressed his palm to the doorframe, his upper body leaning forward.

_What are you hiding from?_

The only reply to his unspoken question was only a deep, angry groan, it was not loud, its sound muffled by the wooden door which separated the two rooms, but the message was still clear.

_Go away._

Underneath the facade of rage and aggressiveness, the hooded man could sense fear oh so clearly. Instead of the warning message the one hidden inside the locked room might wish, so desperately to send out. The shout turned out more like a helpless plea from a wounded animal. 

The new comers always did it at the beginning. 

The hooded figure thought to himself dryly. He had seen it for so many times: They trashed along the line, they begged for release, they cursed their own bad luck, they struggled blindly against their fate till the realization sank in to let them know once trapped, there was no escape. 

They always struggled against the unavoidable; they all did at the very beginning. He knew he should wait to see for how long this one could withstand his ordeal. How long it would take before he gave in. The dark man always found their reaction amusing to him, for he never found it necessary to retreat himself from his desires or condemn it, like they did.

That was the reason _they_ suffered.

But in the end, none of them had ever been able to escape, neither should this one. All he needed was just a little push---

However, before he could do anything. The hooded man felt turbulences forming in somewhere beyond him, seemingly being called into being form the void. Seconds later the swirling invisible whirlwind lashed pass him, rushing toward the door like an invisible whirlwind of forces. 

A loud bang could be heard echoing inside the small apartment as the dark figure watched the door before him suddenly being burst open by the unseen force. Instantly as the damaged doorframe fell apart, the room inside was revealed to him.

The small bedroom was as chaotic and destroyed as the rest of the apartment. The single window opposite of entrance was opened, instantly the weakening gust of eerie wind went through the window and vanished as it lost its strength. Most importantly, the room was empty.

Not a single trace could be found to proof someone was there just minutes ago, trashing and moaning in agony behind the locked door. But of course the hooded figure knew better.

So long as there was shadow and darkness, then there wouldn't be any place they couldn't reach.

 _He_ had hidden in this room when he first arrived, but now he was gone, going into the wild playground which the general public referred as Tokyo.   
.  
For creatures like _them_ , there would be no midnight haunting without bringing back the kills.

And Karyu would not be the exclusion.

Although he must admit he couldn't tell where Karyu might be heading towardwith millions people wandering in the city, masking the blond's presence away, it was impossible to pick up his trace. Still it wasn't like he was completely clueless, for he still remembered the brown haired young man who exited Karyu's place mere hours before. This one could be one of the possibilities, even a likely one for the matter at hand.

Now standing by the window, a smirk appeared at the corners of the dark figure's thin lips he gazed quietly down at the streets below, bitter wind blew pass him but he didn't seem to notice the cold. 

Outside of the window, a full moon could be seen appearing between the gaps of thinning clouds of dusty deep blue color. For a brief moment, Karyu's room and the lone figure standing by the window were both illuminated fully by the pure rays of moonlight.

But the moment of purity and light slipped easily away as layers of cloud shrouded the moon again. 

By the time shadows filled the space within the four walls of Karyu's room, it was once again empty, deserted of any sign of life.

to be continued.  
What do you think?


	6. Human clad Monsters part 5

Human-clad Monsters 

Part 5

Hizumi could barely remember how he got back to his own home; the only thing he recalled clearly was reaching the train station and then getting into the train, when it finally arrived, in a hurry. He also remembered with a sigh of relief he watched the train's doors closing after he stepped inside. He couldn't explain why but it was only after he entered the train and was surrounded by a whole carriage of strangers, only after that the sense of safety finally filled in. At least in here, hiding among the crowd he no longer felt the unsettling presence of unseen eyes fixing upon him, watching his every move.

After leaving the train station behind, Hizumi made his way back home without incident. Soon he fixed himself a quick simple meal. Putting the dirty dish to the sink, the brown haired man went back outside to watch some TV, thinking it would help him to free his mind of troubled thoughts. 

It was a quiet night; surprisingly there wasn't even a phone call or a message from one of his friends to disturb his solitude. He sat before the television, changing channels frequently, hoping to find something interesting to watch, to distract himself from his own thoughts, with little success. 

Eventually he had to give up, turning off the TV Hizumi leaned his head against the edge of his narrow bed, a deep sigh heaving from the back of his throat.

He didn't want to doubt his best friend, but it was too obvious that Karyu was holding something back. Something Karyu meant to keep from him.

That was strange, though Hizumi had no problem understood sometime people needed to keep a few things away from their loved ones; he also understood that privacy and certain boundaries needed to be respected even among the closest of friends. Still the brown harried could not make sense of Karyu's defensive attitude and the distance he suddenly insisted on putting between them.

They were close when they were younger. Hizumi recalled with a mixed feeling of bitter and sweet, though sweetness of fond memories certainly did eclipse the bitter aftertaste the bad ones brought. Rock music--the music genre which preferred by them both and their passion for music and instruments formed a much stronger bond between them than other bonds they had ever experienced in other friendships. 

It was difficult for the brown head to recall a time the two of them weren't hanging out, working side by side with schoolwork or part time jobs; or simply practicing guitar or a few other instruments in each other's company.

In those youthful, hopeful days as teenagers with little to worry about, they had so many grand plans for their future, a future with them staying close and achieving success together. They harbored the same dream of forming a rock band together, with Karyu be the guitarist (since Karyu was really good at it) and Hizumi would be the singer (since he could sing much better than Karyu), making good music together, and became successful. 

After overcoming many difficulties and quite numbers of drawback and failures, just when they were getting close to from a functional band and actually _started_ something, their dream was shattered. Hizumi found out he was suffering with a rare vocal disease and his doctor informed him that he could not make singing his career when he was plagued by such illness. According to the doctor, there was no known cure for the disease; therefore it was too risky for him to try to be a professional vocalist in such condition. If he insisted on singing and by turn using his own vocal in demanding manner, then he'd risk damaging his own health in a long run, or even losing his voice forever.

Though shocked and disappointed beyond words, Hizumi eventually came around, he tried not to be bitter for his loss, after overcoming the disappointment of not able to---didn't even have a chance to-- start a career in the music industry, Hizumi chose to continue his study, worked hard and eventually established himself as a graphic designer.  

On the other hand, Karyu did not give up his dream for music. He went on playing his guitar, joining bands (though unluckily joining bands and then falling out with them seemed to still be a pattern for Karyu), and looked for employment as a supporting musician here and there along the lines. At first like many other newcomers who struggled to find their places in the ever-changing music industry, Karyu's path was filled with uncertainty and let-downs but as Hizumi watched on by, doing his best to encourage his friend when the latter faced difficulties. Still later on, the brown head could see that Karyu was slowly on his way up: his name and reputation was being steadily spread among the circle of musicians and fans alike, more and more groups requested his help whenever there were performances and tours; although Karyu's career was still far from successful, still his profession as a musician, along with his income was doubtlessly improving. He could tell Karyu was getting somewhere, toward a destination where his dream might finally come true. Somewhere Hizumi knew, he would one day no longer able to follow into.

So was that what had really troubled him so much lately? Was he afraid? Was he afraid of losing his friend?

As strange as it might sound, even since he learned that he could not be a professional singer; Hizumi had long _expected_ something like this would happen one day. 

Although people might call him paranoid and overreacted, still strange enough he felt like he was _losing_ his best friend. First there was the unusual lack of contact, then Karyu had looked so distant tonight, he didn't even seem like he wanted Hizumi's company, didn't even want to see him at all. And for goodness' sake, he couldn't think of a reason for him to deserve being treated like this.

Though he had always tried not to feel left-behind as Karyu chose to follow his dream--- _their_ shared dream in once upon a time, still logic told him their paths would one day no longer be intertwined. As time passed, as they faced different people and made new friends, their divided paths bestowed them with different life experiences, sooner or later there would be hardly anything left for them to hold onto their friendship, perhaps expected a bit of bitter-sweet memories from the past: a fading reminder of their youth and all the could-have-beens.

Maybe what had taken place tonight and Karyu's distant attitude was a sign that the blond had decided he was tired of Hizumi's company eventually.

Turning, Hizumi rubbed his closed eyes with the back of his palm tiredly as if it could rid him of his negative thoughtsa habit that he had whenever he was troubled or worried. Then he stopped, heaving another deep sigh and closed his eyes, suddenly feeling drained.

He must be even more worn out than he had felt, for the longest of time Hizumi remained half lying, half sitting next to the bed, his head resting on his elbows. His tired mind told him he should get up, turning off the light and climbed properly into bed and called it a night, but by now his eyelids felt too heavy to be reopened, his limbs also didn't seem wanting to move and obey orders from his mind either.

The brown head had no idea how much time had already slipped by as he rested there, floating somewhere between consciousness and dreams. Even though his eyes had remained shut, still the rest of his body and mind seemed to be unusually _hyperactive_ , aware of the outside world around him. It was a strange sensation Hizumi had never experienced before, it was almost like he was now able to see things with his eyes not opened, hearing the faintest of sound which he usually would be lost to him, sensing the tiniest movement nearby like it was the sixth sense, it was like dreaming a dream when your mind was still awake.

With his eyes still shut tight, heavy with tiredness, Hizumi could still see--- _sensed_ the yellowish lamplight in his room was fading, replaced by the darkness of night. Shadows began to dance in his room, there was nothing but weak rays of moonlight illuminated his dim apartment now as slowly, very slowly, writhing shades seemed to move at its own will, seeped out from the corners of the room, gathering around him, hovering above the edge of his bed, its pulsing movements barely noticeable but the shadow was _growing_ ,its shade of darkness spreading, deepening to a point that it seemed to eventually eclipse the pale moonlight.

Before he knew it, the small noises from outside of the window disappeared like someone had turned down the volume of a radio. The room was now shrouded in a thick silence, all that was left echoing in Hizumi's ears was the sound of his own heartbeat and

The soft yet unsteady hiss of someone else's breathing.

What was he hearing now? Who _what_ was there? Hizumi tried to will his eyes to open in order to see what was happening, but found that he couldn't. There was not a muscle in his body which would obey his command, it felt as if he was kind of trapped within his own motionless flesh, it was almost like being drugged, or..spellbound.  

Under such condition, he should have been overwhelmed with fear, but Hizumi found himself unaffected as if he had been gone under shock and became paralyzed. 

Everything felt so surreal to a point the fear failed to well up. Did it mean he was dreaming? 

Hizumi felt _something_ snaked silently behind him, an unfamiliar weight pressing onto his clad back, causing a shiver to shook down his spine at once.

This definitely didn't feel like a dream.

 _It_ was close, frighteningly close to him now, and Hizumi still couldn't move a muscle, nor could he make any noise in protesting even though alarm bells of all sort were ringing madly in his mind. 

The unsteady sound of breathing was now right next to his ear, he could faintly sense a pair of arms circling him, his breath halted as he felt fingers--- _claws_ moving along his torso, he shivered once more when those icy clawed fingers made direct contact with his skin, the sensation of the touch felt alien, unexpectedly...cold.  

What was happening? Still trapped in his sleep, Hizumi's heart started speeding up in panic and confusion. What was that _thing_ behind him? That unknown _creature_ was behind him, drawing him closer to its cold embrace, reaching for him, _sensing_ him with such urgency and---

Hunger.

A jolt of sharp, pointy pain spread from the side of his neck to the rest of his nerve system like wildfire just as the thought took shape. The pain took him by utter surprise, breaking through the hazy numbness of slumber which had clouded his mind. Suddenly he could feel his limbs moving, body twisting blindly in a desperate attempt to break free. But the thing which had claimed him was too strong for him to trash away from. The pain at his neck only increased as Hizumi felt his skin breaking as if a beast of prey was having him by its jaws---

The last thing he could sense was the sensation of something thick and hot seeping from his wounds. The rich copper smell of it filled his nose at once. Was itblood?

Instantly he was waking up with a sharp cry tossed its way from his throat; his eyes snapping open only to be greeted with the all-too familiar surroundings of his dimly lit bedroom.

He shook up from the bed in alarm, turning from side to side, scanning his room to findhe couldn't tell what he had expected, or feared to find, an intruder maybe, or something even  worse

Or his worst nightmare made flesh.

But under the yellowish lamplight, he found nothing out of place. He was alone, safely in his own bed--- 

His body tensed with the thought, Hizumi looked down at himself, now he realized he was sitting in the middle of his bed, but the problem was, the last thing he remembered he was sitting on the floor, leaning against the bed, he couldn't recall anything about dragging himself up to lay flat on his bed, nor falling asleep upon it.

Drawing in deep breathes to slow his racing heart; the brown haired man covered his eyes with his palm, confusing images flashed through his mind-eyes from a second before they all faded to black. He didn't know what to think, he didn't know what was going on. Hardly anything about this night was making much sense.

The strange shadows in his room, the shadowy presencethe _thing_ that seized him and the all-too-real pain.could all these really be a dream? Could the whole eerie experience nothing but his tired mind playing trick with him?

Hesitatingly, Hizumi reached a hand to the side of his neck, it didn't take long for his trembling fingers found the tiny twin wounds there.

The wounds were not large, but they were definitely _fresh_ , he could feel half dried blood caking around the wounds with the tips of his fingers. 

Quickly Hizumi withdraw his hand, unwilling to acknowledge the wounds were _there_. It had to be a self-influenced injury. It would be too much for him if he were to admit the existence of these wounds. 

Now being too wildly awake to go back to sleep, Hizumi rose from his bed, moving to the kitchen for something to drink, maybe for a glass of water or a beer, he didn't mind which; for he had a feeling that he wouldn't be able to go back to sleep anytime too soon.

The unexplained wounds were not the only things which frightened him.

What frightened him most didn't leave as solid a proof as those tiny wounds, what worried him most was an image which flashed in his haze of vision when he woke. It was the last thing he thought he had seen before he broke free from his 'nightmare', it was gone the second he opened his eyes but the memory of it just wouldn't go away: an image of a ghostly dark figure hovering above him, a pair of inhuman-looking wild, pale white orbs staring down at him with unveiled hunger written all over those strange yet somewhat familiar looking eyes.

To be continued.  
What do you think?


	7. Human clad Monsters part 6

Part 6

The next morning, when Hizumi looked into the bathroom's mirror, he was startled by how...awful he looked.

After a restless night it wasn't surprising for him to look worn out, but there was something more than just exhaustion making itself known when he stared at his own reflection that day. His hair was a mess, his skin appeared to ashen pale, huge dark circles under his eyes. Plus he felt just as horrible as he now looked.  

He cleaned his face with icy water in an attempt to fresh himself up, but when he gazed up at the mirror again and saw drops of water drifting down his chin, Hizumi still felt as drained and lifeless as before.

However, having sleeping problem didn't mean he could skip work in the morning. Therefore the brown haired man started to drag himself out of the bathroom after finishing his usual routines.  But before he turned and left, he caught something strange at the corner of his eye, causing him to turn sharply back to face the mirror. A shiver shook down his spine as his eyes drifted to the side of his neck to check on where the wounds from the previous night's 'incident' should be. Much to his shock, instead of finding the half-closed up twin wounds there, he discovered his skin was smooth and freed of any wound or even the slightest hint of scar. 

His breath caught in his throat instantly, Hizumi forced himself to touch the side of his neck with quivering fingers, the tips of his digits made contact with unbroken skin, he pressed his fingertips hard against his flesh, but couldn't find anything out of ordinary.

Hizumi wiped his face with his palm, he felt a sudden urge to laugh hysterically. It couldn't be....something had happened to him and left the wounds there last night, he was so certain of it before he finally fell asleep. But now...the only evident of this 'nightmare' (he referred the strange happening as a 'nightmare' due to lack of better description and explanation) was gone.

Had he been dreaming all along and imagining the whole incident and the mysterious wounds?

This was the only reasonable explanation Hizumi could come up with, but how could it explain why he felt so unusually weak and exhausted?

***

The beginning of the new day was proofed to be a gloomy one, with heavy grayish rain clouds covered up the entire sky when Hizumi rushed out of the apartment building to go to work. 

It was eight o' clock in the morning. The sideways were half empty with only a handful of passerby crossing the streets now and then. Shivering under the cold, Hizumi wrapped the scarf around his neck even tighter as he hurried toward the train station.

Originally he planed to get to the station as soon as he could, without stopping, but his pace slowed when he came up to a bridge and saw a large group of people gathering at one side of said bridge, shouting, peering over the barrier and pointing down at the river below. 

Hizumi had had passed through this narrow steel bridge almost everyday on his way to work. Therefore he realized something must have gone wrong when he saw the crowd gathering on the bridge. It was extremely unusual for so many people to linger on said bridge so early in the morning, when everyone was supposed to be on their ways to their workplaces or schools. And as Hizumi walked closer, he realized people were shouting, calling out to each other with tensed, fearful expressions on their faces; some of them were breaking apart from the crowd, running off to different directions as if they were afraid, or they wanted to escape from something which scared them. The youth could hear more than one person shouted 'Call the police!' among the noises and hysterical cries.

Curiosity drove him to get closer to the crowd, it was when he heard another man cried out in a barely coherent manner as the man ran pass him in panic.

"She's dead! She's dead! In the river!"

Automatically, without realizing what he was actually doing as if being spellbound by the stranger's words, Hizumi took a step forward to the barrier and peered down, and like everyone else who was standing on the bridge, he saw what was floating on the rippling river surface.

All he did in that morning was looking down, just a simple, mindless action, but he would soon regret his own action when he saw with his own eyes what was there in the river.

Hizumi had passed through the bridge for countless of times in the past, but not once did he notice what the river below might actually look like, but now he finally knew. 

Under the dim daylight, the river appeared to be of dirty deep green or even black in color, with hints of greenish glitter waving along the oily-looking river surface. A woman was floating among the waves, locks of long black hair tangling around her like dying seaweeds. She wore a long dress which might once be a lighthearted pink or light-red color, but now the fabric that wrapped around her torso was hopelessly tainted. Her limbs looked unnaturally pale, bloodless; her equally pale face was above water, her unseeing, glassy eyes stared at the empty space above.

One look was enough for everyone to know she wasn't alive, the evidences were too obvious, part of her skin had already turned blueish in color, her eyes were filmed over and lifeless. It didn't take a doctor to know she was long beyond saving.

For a moment Hizumi could only watched in horror, he watched helplessly as the body slowly, very slowly floating nearer and nearer to the bridge, getting closer to them in every second. All he could see was the corpse's lifeless eyes, opened widely and frozen forever in death. The dead woman's feature was still recognizable enough, the progress of decomposition had still not yet maimed her face ---indicated that she might not be in the water for so very long, and her face was entirely unfamiliar to Hizumi, face of a total stranger. Maybe he should be relief that the dead woman wasn't anyone he knew, that he was unrelated to the victim......but he just couldn't shrug off the strangest feeling that the dead woman's eyes were fixing on him directly.....her cold, dead eyes---

Unable to bare this absurd but disturbing thought, Hizumi stepped back and closed his eyes, trying to force the image of the dead body out of his mind, but the damage was already done. Even with his eyes so tightly shut, he could still picture the river, and the woman's body floating among the waves like a big broken rag doll. 

to be continued.

This chapter is partly inspired by _Don't Look Now_ , a thriller from 1970s.


	8. Human clad Monsters part 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oh dear readers! I recommend you to listen to a piece of piano music (see the link below!) while reading part 6 and also this character! The music piece is called "La Bambina" (means 'little girl' in Italian), from a thriller called Spirits of the Dead, a collection of three short films based on Edgar Allan Poe's stories.

Human Clad-Monsters 

Part 7

For the rest of the day Hizumi struggled to get on with his work, trying to distract himself with the tasks he had to preform, still the images of the dead woman floating in the river kept coming back to haunt him repeatedly. 

He was still not recovering from the shock. Maybe he was being naive, still it was frightening to find out something so horrible could happen somewhere so close to home. 

When lunch break arrived, he sat down and ate with a few coworkers just as usual. He ate and talked very little while the others enjoyed their meals and chatted freely, he simply nodded or made blurry sound of agreement at the back of his throat whenever he needed to make response. 

When lunch break ended, the brown head followed the group back to their office, going back to his seat and started working with the help of his computer and a design program. 

He didn't tell anyone about what he had witnessed in the morning, for it felt.......inappropriate to bring up something like this in front of his oblivious coworkers. He knew he wouldn't be able to will his mouth to open and form words to describe what he had seen even if he wanted to. Any thought of ever putting what he had witnessed into words filled his stomach with ice, as if any attempt to speak about the horrible scene would somehow made it even more real and terrifying than before. It was the last thing he wanted, for what he had witnessed was awful enough as it was.

Though he could clearly imagine how the incident would develop: police would be summoned, they would manage to pull the body out of the water under the watchful eyes of many onlookers, while reporters snapping pictures by the riverbanks. News about the mysterious death would soon spread out, by the time of dusk, local news would also pick up the story and broadcasting it to the public. Sooner or latter the police would conclude whether the departed had met her pitiful end due to natural causes--either an accident or a case of suicide, or not. 

What if instead of being the victim of an accident, the girl was in fact murdered?

He didn't see any wound upon the body, but Hizumi was no fool, he had watched enough TV and crime thrillers to know there were so many ways for people to murder someone else without leaving visible wounds upon their victims.

If she was murdered, then it meant there might be a murderer lurking somewhere in the neighborhood. People would be frightened and the fear, surely it would spread.

It was a horrible presume, but women falling prey to sick psychopaths wasn't something entirely unheard of in the city. So if there was no new victim, no more evidence was being uncovered, then the incident would continue to capture the interest of the general public for about a week before something as equally astonishing took place and turned the public's interest elsewhere. 

Other people might soon lose interest, but Hizumi knew he would not be able to wipe the image of the dead girl and those glassy eyes out of his mind anytime soon. He didn't know who she was, didn't know anything about her when she was alive, didn't know why and how she ended up like this, still seeing a dead body first-hand and up close wasn't something he could just easily forget. The gruesome scene of the lifeless form floating in the dark waves of the river also did nothing to lighten the weariness and this faint, lingering sense of wrongness which seemed to have clung around him even since last night.

The events of yesterday played out before his mind's eyes for a brief second. 

He remembered leaving Karyu's apartment, feeling more worry than relief after meeting his friend.

He thought back to the time when he walked along the empty street, unable to shrug off the eerie sense that there were eyes following him...

He recalled with a stir, about that strangely vivid, frightening nightmare he had in the middle of the night.

In the morning, the body of a girl had been discovered in the neighborhood.......

Could it really be purely coincidental for so many weird things to happen at once? 

 

Or maybe he was only being irrational and paranoid?

Wiping his temper with the back of his hand, Hizumi sighed tiredly. As working hours dragged on, the side effect of the stress and his restless night was making itself known.

He took his eyes off the computer screen before placing his elbows on the desk and buried his face into his palms. He took a deep breath.

In the darkness beyond his closed eyelids, Hizumi could hear all sort of sounds made by his coworkers as they went about their routines. He could hear the blurred sound of small talks, the tiny noise of paper being turned, the ringing of phones, the humming of printers and other machines. Life went on as usual as Hizumi sat very still with his face still shielded by his own palms, trying to get a grip of himself.

He looked up only when he felt he was ready enough. Light poured into his vision at once as he reopened his eyes, taking in the familiar surrounding of the office. For a moment everything seemed in order, ordinary, _right_.

It was before he caught sight of a shadowy figure stood behind the front door.

From where he sat, Hizumi could see the office's front door from across the room. There were three rows of seats between his own seat but right now those seats before him were unoccupied. With no people or object blocking his view, the brown head could see there was someone standing before the the door, which was made of thick half translucent glasses.

The brown haired man had no idea since when had someone been standing there behind the door, but once the presence caught his attention, he could not stop noticing how strange it was for someone to just... _stand_ there behind the glass door, standing so still without opening the door and step into the office.

At first he thought it was only someone from other department--perhaps in need of delivering some documents to their office. But as one second ticking toward the next, as seconds ticking toward minute; the glass door remained closed, and the shadowy figure behind it remained perfectly, disturbingly still. Making no attempt to leave or enter.

The translucent glasses made it impossible to make out any detail. He couldn't even tell whether it was a man or a woman standing there. The young designer-in-training could only see the blurred silhouette of a person. 

Half consciously, Hizumi straightened himself, his palms pressed to his desk for support, his eyes fixed on the shadowy figure behind the door. He stood almost as motionless as the mysterious silhouette outside, hardly even drawing a breath. 

He continued to stare at this strange silhouette in utter confusion. It just wasn't normal. No one in his or her right mind would just stand _still_ in hallway like this! During work hours, everyone inside the building would usually be working, walking around the hallway--- _moving_ , not standing still in this utterly creepy manner.

A tiny voice at the back of his mind made him realized that he seemed to be the _only_ person who noticed the silhouette behind the door. His coworkers continued to work as if they didn't notice anything, from the concerns of his eyes Hizumi could see them all busily performing their tasks, no one even gave the shadowy figure right outside of the office's front door any heed.

The tension was too much. Taking in a deep breath, Hizumi moved around his desk and walked slowly toward the door. As if in a trance, he found himself getting closer and closer even when a growing sense of dread and unwillingness took roof in his heart. He could felt cold sweat falling down the line of his back under his shirt despite the air-conditioning. Deep down he knew he didn't want to get close but he couldn't stop himself as if invisible strings were dragging him forward, dictating his every move.

Silence seemed to fill every space, he could no longer hear any sound. The chatting, the sound of machines operating, the footsteps, they all seemed to simply fainted away, being blocked out as if the volume of a radio being tuned down to zero. 

He was still aware of the blurry figures of his colleagues as they moved about in the spacey office, but no one ever happened to walk into his path and broke the spell which had him so completely overwhelmed. To make him pause and rethink what he was doing.

He was about ten feet away from the glass door when he saw the shadowy figure at the other side moved.

Suddenly, a pair of palms were now pressing against the glass, and the figure seemed to lean closer to the glass door. Even from across the distance, Hizumi could tell those palms were now pressing forcefully against the half translucent glass, pushing weight beyond them as if wanting to break the thick glass. 

Hizumi's breath caught in his throat. Although reason told him people from the outside couldn't see into the office, just like he couldn't see who was standing behind the door, still he once again sense the strong awful feeling of being watched. 

That......person at the other side of the glass door, now Hizumi could almost _sense_ him. Every slow, shallow breath he took, every pulse, those unseen, unblinking eyes fixed upon him, observing, drinking him in; with a terrible sense of longing and greed. 

Hunger.

_Closer......_

The command was not formed by words or any recognizable sound to human's ears,  but it echoed so loudly within his skull, drowning out any protest and doubt. Something within Hizumi writhed as the inaudible command took over. His feet carried him across the short remaining distance between him and the glass door.

Before he knew what he was doing, his fingers had already wrapped themselves around the door's handle.

"Yoshida san!"

A shout finally broke the spell.

Startled, Hizumi turned himself around sharply---out of sheer instinct other than out of recognition--searching for where the shout had came from.

Reality rushed back in almost at once. Instantly his eyes met with the sight of his manager's annoyed, redden face, standing directly behind him with only about five feet away, with his arms crossed before his chests. Obviously the older man was the one calling out to him, looking far less than pleased at the moment. 

The brown haired man also began to become painfully aware of the fact that half a dozen of his fellow coworkers were also staring at him and the manager in amusement as though they were watching some comedy.

"Where do you think you are going?" The middle age man nearly barked.  "Remember I need to see your first draft for the Sugimoto .Ltd's project _within an hour!?_ "

Hizumi frozen in dread, remembering about the project, all the half finished designs stored in his computer. How could he forget he was supposed to hand in the first draft to his superior today?

Murmuring an apology under his breath, Hizumi bowed slightly to the manager, promising that everything was under control as he fought to hide his panic away. Next he quickly hogged back to his seat. Starting instantly to try catching up the deadline. 

Later Hizumi stole a glance up at the closed glass door from across the room, but nothing was to be found there anymore as if the eerie silhouette had never been there. 

to be continued.

I realized that so far this story has been relayed too much on suspense but has less than enough on plot development and explanation, I'll try to work it out in the next chapter.


	9. Human clad Monsters part 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clive Barker's experimental short film Forbidden (Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eea8W6g-5OU&feature=relmfu) partly served as the inspiration for this chapter. The soundtrack suits the chapter just nicely!

Human clad-Monsters 

Part 8

With his palm pressed against the brick wall for support, Karyu struggle to stumble along the narrow alley with uncertain steps. He knew without any support, he could barely walked straight with his strength nearly drained. 

The alley was deserted with not a living soul in sight. The blond dragged himself forward, his chest heaving with every struggling breath he took. Now he was alone, the crowded livehouse he had just left behind now seemed like a fade memory from a previous lifetime. He didn't sense anyone else's presence nearby, which meant even if he needed help, no one would be there to come to his aid. 

He was on his own, walking to the darkness of the night without even knowing where it would take him. He only knew he needed to leave, to get away from the crowd, from everyone else.

His electrical guitar, being placed safely inside the case ever since its owner left the livehouse, was now hanging on the blond haired man's back. In any other day Karyu carried his guitar around like it weighted nothing, but now it felt so unusually heavy, like a dead weight pressing against him. Karyu knew only too well it was one of the signs that indicated how badly his condition had gone. 

Looking down at his hand, which hanged heavily next to his side, the blond could see his own fingers trembling. He tried to will the shiver to stop, but failed. 

To onlookers, he might appear to be drunk, but only Karyu  it wasn't alcohol affecting his body. He knew instead of being drunk and oblivious, his mind was painfully clear, aware of a sense of growing unwell and weakening of strength.

The chaotic memories of what had taken place in the livehouse came rushing back into his mind. The wild cheering of the audience, people applauding and storming their feet, it was almost like a riot.

The audience......it wasn't so big of a crowd, to tell the very truth. The band he worked with this time had never drawn in much of a big crowd before. Still, the bewilderment and surprise in those people's eyes, the way those eyes fixing on him...he could still feel their energy floating toward him, calling out to him as if he could feed on it...as if they would readily give him everything they own at that amazing moment, if only he asked.

Tonight Karyu once again served as a supporting guitarist for a band which members happened to be friends of another friend. The band had cooperated with him before so they also called him up this time when they hit the town. But Karyu only showed up in the backstage at the last minute, long after nightfall and the band in question was less than 30 minutes away from taking the stage. The band-members were of course extremely furious of Karyu's unexplained lateness, but everything changed once they took the stage. Their frustration and anger toward Karyu was simply forgotten soon as they began to play. Something unexpected had taken place, the musicians couldn't help but noticing, and the audience who gathered in front of the small stage had definitely also noticed.

At first their audience was mostly just half interested with their performance--after all they were just one of the indies bands with hardly any visible fanbase. But soon the atmosphere was changing, as they played something began to _change_. They performance became more fierce than ever before, the musicians started to trash, swing, jumping and banging everywhere across the stage as if they were possessed. They fingered their instruments until their knuckles ached, they sang and screamed along the music till their voice went hoarse, and the audience went wild, responding to the music, drinking it all in like thirsty men in need of water.

But afterward no one could pinpoint exactly why there would be such a significant difference about their performance that night, why they had managed to play with such brilliance, bewildering the crowd like never before. Even though they still didn't know what had made the different yet the musicians were overjoyed, pleased with themselves nonetheless. 

Therefore in the afterglow of the successful performance, no one noticed Karyu's silently slipping through the backdoor.

The blond knew he had to leave. He simply couldn't stay back to enjoy this success like his fellow musicians did. In fact once the music stopped, once they left the stage, once the light faded out, he found the whole experience too terrible for him to bear.

After going backstage, the other musicians high-fived each other happily, they patted Karyu on the shoulder, the result of their performance had turned out so well therefore no one could stay angry with the blond any longer. Plus in fact, they couldn't help but noticing how well Karyu had seemed to be performing tonight. So they genuinely praised the guitarist, even when Karyu himself knew fully that he couldn't have performed so well, _shouldn't have._

Even before arriving to the livehouse, Karyu knew he was in too fucked up a state to go onstage even before their performance started. In fact he barely looked up at the music sheets, barely remembered the guitar parts he was supposed to memorize before he met with the band; and he barely knew what he was doing during the time they were on stage.

Still music poured out from underneath his fingertips effortlessly as they slipped across the strings of his guitar when he should have failed, in where he should have messed up big time just like he deserved.

But he didn't messed up, instead the crowd before him cheered on nonstop throughout their performance, they were more excited than he had ever seen, and Karyu knew his guitar was the main reason why the audience had reacted like this. 

It might sound terribly arrogant, but tonight it was _his_ performance that worked the magic on the audience, not the other musicians.

Still...goodness, he didn't deserve this, didn't deserve any part of this success, didn't deserve the adoration in those people's eyes, didn't deserve his fellow musicians' respect. Instead he felt _horrible_. The more the crowd seemed to enjoy the music, the more his fellow musicians and friends praised him for his performance, the more he felt like he was nothing but a cheater.

Though what happened tonight was _everything_ he had ever dreamed of, still Karyu would have never expected dream coming true would become so unbearable, like an inescapable nightmare. 

And now, after coming down from the high, he was in pure misery.

How ironic it was for him to feel so miserable and drained after tasting ecstasy for the first time, after he had just given the greatest performance of his life in the livehouse tonight...

Everything must come with a price. Kirito had warned him before. In his own ambiguous way, he did warn him, though knowing quite well that his 'warning' was meaningless when it was placed right next to the temptation he brought.

First the other man baited him with questions, questions which he had always dreaded to answer, even to himself.

 

_"You're bored, aren't you?"_

_"....I know you are. Your life, it bores you, right? Always the same purposeless routines. Dim ordinary life, everyday, suffocating... "_

_"You dreamed of something better. You're looking for something_ more. _"_

 

 _"And that's why you came to_ us _."_

 

_"I even know what exactly you want: you want what life has failed to offer......"_

 

When he first heard those words, they sounded almost like an revelation, an answer to his every doubt and disappointment; but now......How foolish he was to think what the man had offered was what he wanted.

_"You're looking for a way out. You had lost faith, your hope was gone along the way..."_

_"Still somehow...you still trusted, and then you found_ us _."_

Eventually he realized he had never found what he had been always looking for, not really. But in the end, he did find _them_. Those shadowy creatures from the otherside. He had been tricked into believing _they_ were the answer he sought. 

How wrong he was to think they held the answers. How wrong it was for him to think he had found the escape he had been searching for.

_"When you saw us, you knew we are what you have always been looking for. Am I right?"_

But before Karyu got himself into _this_ , he had thought he wanted it, he had envied their freedom. To be able to live without retrain, the _freedom_ it entailed, the power to drive people crazy with the simple help of his instrument. Oh, such power.

_"If life failed you, then perhaps in darkness, you'll find what you're looking for..."_

In his moment of weakness and doubt, he had thought he wanted it all.

_"When darkness looks you in the eyes. You're not yourself anymore. The life from before---the life as you know it--would no longer hold any meaning"_

Did the life as he once knew it truly was meaningless? A large part of him wanted to agree, but a faint voice at the far corner of his clouded mind, tried to tell him otherwise.

Hizumi's face flashed across his mind for a brief moment, the one person who still held so much meaning to him, but even his dear friend's face was fading quickly when he was surrounded by the endless darkness from all sides.  

 _"...when darkness finds you, you'll no longer be who you once was. Instead, you_ become."

 

Kirito didn't lie. Karyu thought as the bitter sense of irony was driven home. He had looked darkness right in the eyes and saw the horrible truth. He had invited the darkness in. After that he was no longer himself. Now he was becoming _something_ he didn't even want to start thinking about.

An overwhelming wave of nausea seized him as soon as the thought took shape, at first he tried to block his mouth with his palm, but the urge was too strong then the next thing he knew, he was bending over and throwing up violently. 

Coughing, Karyu could taste the sickening strong smell of copper and decay as the liquefied vomit rushed pass his throat into the open, tainting the bare ground before him. He gave out yet another loud cough before he wiped the sticky liquid away from the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand.

He took a step back away from the disgusting mess on the ground, the rich smell of rotten blood still lingered at the back of his throat. Despite of the dim light, he could still see the dark, thick pool of blackness spreading before him, the faint scent which smelled strangely similar with rusty copper, now began to fill the air.

to be continued!

So what do you think? Comments are love and do feel free to ask question!


	10. Human clad Monsters part 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For Kirito and the gang's grand entrance into our story, I chose the music from the Hellraiser's trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P7TWm3Akw-s.
> 
> Also other suitable song can be Leviathan, from Hellraiser II Hellbound's soundtrack (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_5Sn4Fjg-Y0)

Human clad-Monsters

Part 9

In the outskirt of the town, there laid a ran-down industrial district, where rows of empty warehouses and closed down factories lined up along the streets. Although there were still a few remaining factories at work during daytime, still after the factory workers' departure by sunset,  the entire district became deserted by the time of nightfall. Most of the ordinary citizens did not like to linger on these street after dark, thinking it wasn't safe, the empty streets and the darkened, deserted buildings making them feel uneasy and nervous, to a point of being afraid of their own shadow. 

Although many of the shabby buildings in the areas were locked down at daytime, still in the middle of the night, a few of such buildings managed temporarily to come to life. 

At the edge of the industrial district, there was an abandoned warehouse down the street's corner. The warehouse in question used to serve once as a site for unlicensed rave parties. Originally the party-planners figured that one of the advantages of hosting parties in an area like this was that they would be less likely to receive complain which might earn them unwanted attention from the authorities. 

The crowded, exciting unlicensed parties, had gone on for a period, but right now the parties had long been over. Once again the warehouse was left empty, forgotten when party-goers moved along to some other fancier, more comfortable and convenient sites to enjoy themselves. 

The fun-loving crowd had all gone off to some other places to continue their quest for pleasure and excitement in somewhere else...where there were no fleeing shadows lurking and twisting at the corners of their eyes.

In their absence, a new brand of residents slipped right through the gates and made themselves quite comfortably at home in the empty shell of this shunned building.

Within the bare, spacey room which once used to sever as a fancy dance hall, the sound of footsteps could be heard echoing across the empty space before three men stopped at the centre of the room. A few broken pieces of furniture were being left there as the party-planners retreated and moved to some new places, but now those abandoned items were once again being put into some good use, even if it was quite a temporary use.  

"I'm bored!" 

Once entering the chilly, poorly lit hall, the youngest member of this small team of three--a slim, pale-skinned young man with a set of jet-black short hair, threw himself upon one of the broken, dusty sofa at the centre of the room, while complaining loudly to no one in particular. "Damn bored..."

One of his companions, a blond haired man who had come to lean himself against a wall nearby, slowly raised an eyebrow when he heard the younger man's loud complain, but the blond man didn't say anything in response. 

"And you, Kohta kun." Pointing a finger at his blond haired company, the one who sat on the broken sofa directed his accusation at the silent man. "Had done _nothing_ to make me feel better!"

The man who stood by the wall calmly met the younger one's provoking stare. Amusement laced at his voice as he replied. "Since when has your mood became _my_ responsibility, Giru?"

"You--- _my dear_ \--" The black haired man who had just been addressed as Giru, countered without a pause. "Stopped me from having my fun--"

"Only so you won't make even bigger of a mess than you had already done!" The blond one hissed impatiently before he fished something from his pocket and threw it down onto the floor.  
As it turned out, it was a piece of dirty newspaper that was being thrown on the bare floor. The newspaper was from the day before, it came to rest on the ground, just a few steps from where the black haired young man sat. Part of the paper was soaked and the letters blurred and damaged by rainwater, but the larger printed headline still remained clearly visible. 

The headline read: _WOMAN FOUND DEAD IN RIVER_

In smaller letters, a line also read: _Police Suspects Foul Play Is Involved_

Right below the headline, there was also a large black-and-white photo of a young woman with long straight hair, the photo of a woman whom had been identified as the victim who was found in the river.

For a moment both men only eyed the fallen newspaper in tensed silence, Giru stared at the black-and-white photo of the dead young woman while the one who was called Kohta averted his glance from the piece of newspaper to the younger man's face, studying his expression closely.

"It's your handiwork, am I right?" Kohta asked with an impassive tone, but his cold eyes never left Giru's face.

"I just wanted to play." The black haired youth sank back to the sofa before mouthing a half-heartened explanation in self-defence. "But she.......women are just so easy to break."

The youth even ended his sentence with a shrug as if his statement was enough for an explanation. 

"Just for how many times we have to tell you not to do this!? For how many times we have to remind you to be careful, not to attract attention? I can't believe you have the nerve to just...throw her into the river after you were...done?"

"Don't use that tone with me, Kohta!" Giru's nails were digging into the worn armrests of the sofa, his eyes burning holes upon the blond man before him. "I don't answer to you!"

"Oh yeah, you don't. But you have _him_ to answer to." Lighting a cigarette, Kohta calmly scolded the younger man, like one might scold a child who didn't know better. "We had just arrived to this town, but you are already making some headline news. He won't like this."

"You and Takeo are always so uptight. That's your problem." Instead of feeling threatened, the tattooed youth stood right up with a smirk, baring his teeth. "Kirito isn't like you."

In turn, Kohta's eyes began to glow with a strange halo.  "So you think you know him so... _well_."

"You--"

But before Giru could counterattack, the third member of their group finally stepped in. 

"Just cool it, you two." The man, who was clad entirely in black, stepped into the halo of the dim light. He seemed to be in his late twenty, he was average in height, his warm brown coloured hair fell along his cheekbones, which highlighted his unnaturally pale skin.

"He started it first." The dark haired youth took a step back from Kohta, crossed his arms in displease as he stared at the brown haired man. "Are you siding with him, Takeo?"

" I'm not siding with anyone." The brown haired man shook his head slowly. "I'm only trying to make some peace here."

Kohta sat himself down on a dusty stool nearby, drawing deeply from his cigarette as he eyed his brown haired companion with half interest, replying. "Peace? Do you know how ironic this word sounds coming from your lips...?"

"Yeah, you know we are _not_ made for freaking ppppeaaaaceeeee--" Surprisingly, it was Giru who ended up agreeing with Khota's opinion. 

Takeo only shrugged. "Anyway, at least a relative peace among ourselves is still needed, don't you agree?"

His question was met with silence, all three of them couldn't help thinking of the possibility of them turning on each other, and the consequences it would bring. The idea was terrifying as much as it was intriguing, but it was not something they particularly wanted to think about.

Beneath their fine features, their smart outfits and their civilized mannerism, they were still creatures of unrest, greed, chaos and madness. 

There were only so few of them left so the three of them must coexist together, but there was also one thing they were unable to forget—

_They would never live in peace._

It was something like their destiny. If only unwholesome creatures like them really did have destiny to being with.

After a long pause, once again Takeo eventually took up his task to break the ice. "Just try to relax for tonight, okay?"

Slowly, Giru took a step back, and slipped soundlessly into the shadow. 

With the youngest member of their group gone, there were only two black figures left in the middle of the empty hall. Eventually Takeo quietly moved to sit down on the same sofa which was previously occupied by Giru. 

Leaning his upper body forward with his elbows pressed to his knees for support, Takeo looked up to Kohta and asked. "Where's Kirito?"

If it were anyone else, Takeo wouldn't even bother to ask, but Kirito was not just anybody else.

Even though it was nothing official, even though for most of time they were left to do as they saw fit, just like Giru had done; still they all knew that the raven haired man, who wasn't presented at the moment, had the final say when important issues were concerned.

Such kind of unspoken ranking wasn't based on leadership, age or experience, nor was it by their own choosing. No, it was based on something far simpler.

The _Blood Path_ followed Kirito, therefore so did the three of them. They didn't have a choice. It was the way thing was for their kind.

This time Kohta shook his head, remembering he hadn't seen the raven haired one for at least two nights. 

"He went out."

Knowing Kohta for long, Takeo knew it was the blond's way of indirectly saying "How the fuck would I know where he is?"

"Any idea of where he might go?"

Khota turned his attention to the lighter that he held between his fingers while toying with it. "He had just made a new one, you know."

"I know that." The brown haired man raised an eyebrow. "Are you suggesting that Kirito had gone out to have fun with that... new one?"

"You know how he is sometimes."

Takeo gave the idea a thought, and he recalled the time when Giru was first made to join them, a long time ago. 

Resting his head on the backrest behind him, Takeo looked up at the dark shades which hovered on the ceiling above with disinterest. "Do you wonder why he still bothers, after all these years?"

However, before Kohta could answer, both men sensed a vibe of energy shot across the empty space. 

Both of them stood up instantly, before the all too familiar bitter sweet smell filled their noses.

It was a strange, rich wet smell which was so familiar with nasty copper, or a juicy fruit about to rot. 

A trace of thick dark crimson liquid slowly spread across the floor, seeping toward where Kohta and Takeo stood, as if it was reaching out for them. 

The pair stood very still on their spots, their eyes fixed on the darkened entrance from across the hall. 

The crimson flood kept pouring in nonstop, the cold thick liquid was now smoothly pooling around their feet, painting the ground they stood on with an ominous dark red colour. Blood red.

As the two watched on, a dark figure was raising from the spreading tide of red. When the figure straightened himself, stretching his limbs, they could hear a wet sick sound of sticky drops of crimson slowly dripping back to the floor.

Kirito was back.

to be continued.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What do you think?
> 
> By the way, I tried to check out Angelo's photos and videos online when I was writing this chapter, just in order to check out what kind of outfits they would prefer to wear. BUT! Their dress code gave me a headache because most of their outfits are in black and white, and it's difficult to describe clothes when they are all black, or white in color..X___x


	11. Human clad Monsters part 10

Part 10

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_Last year, Hizumi and Karyu went back to their hometown together during a public holiday period. Both of them had been away from home for a long time, so when the time came and both of them managed to make plan for their holiday, they decided to make a visit to their families._

_They enjoyed their stay in their hometown, they met almost everyday during their short visit and did things together. They went to visit their favorite old haunts, met a handful of old friends, watching baseball or football games together with a can of beer in hand, things which people did for relaxation during break._

_Their homecoming would have became one fine, spotless memory if the 'incident' didn't take place._

_Hizumi could still remember during the last night of their stay, they went out for a walk after dinner and eventually ended up by a riverbank near the neighborhood. They sat comfortably on the grassland overlooking the river, with their supply of beer and other snacks. They made small talk and laughed over something or another under the starry night sky, with cool summer breeze blowing across the river, they were quite comfortable._

_Time slipped by slowly as they talked about everything and nothing in particular._

_Eventually they had grown silent. Soon Hizumi noticed himself starting to get tipsy as the empty beer cans around them kept increasing in number. Since having the two of them both being drunk and unable to manage themselves at the dead of the night was no good, Hizumi thought it was time to check on Karyu, who sat right next to him._

_He stole a glance at his tall friend, at this moment Karyu was gazing at the flowing river in silence. The blond seemed to be sober enough, he didn't show any sign of drunkenness, other than the shade of flush across his usually pale skin. It was a good sign that Karyu seemed to be still in good shape, but when Hizumi noticed the blond was reaching for yet another can of beer, he decided maybe he should call it a night now._

_"I think we should go back, Karyu kun." Hizumi suggested._

_Then he stood up, thinking Karyu would do the same, usually when he said he want to leave or go somewhere else, Karyu would follow him. Being an easygoing, gentle person that he was, the blond always went along with Hizumi's ideas. But this time much to his surprise, the taller man remained sitting, he didn't even move._

_Puzzled, Hizumi sat back down, he gazed at his friend waiting for the latter to say something, but all he got was silence. It was when he noticed something was not alright._

_"What's it, Karyu?" the brown head asked in a quiet voice._

_"I don't want to go back." Karyu replied, still not looking at his best friend's direction._

_Hizumi was taken aback by the childish remark from Karyu, he also couldn't overlooked how upset the blond was sounding._

_"Why not?" Still the brown head tried to light the mood by making his voice sounded causal._

_"Oh, _you know why._ "_

_Hizumi recognized the tone, Karyu became so upset only when it was matter concerning his family...his parents in particular._

_During the time they stayed in town, Karyu went over to Hizumi's for dinner a few times. Hizumi's parents were glad to have one of their sons friends coming over, and everyone enjoyed the time they spent together. It really was a relief to see his friend getting along with his parents so well, being so relaxed around them. Hizumi couldn't help thinking. He knew Karyu's relationship with his own parents had been a bit on the rocky side in the recent years. Karyu's parents loved their son, just as his own parents loved him, Hizumi didn't doubt it. Still, they were not really supportive when it came to their son's chosen path as a musician, plus as time pasted, they started to become worry, and the pressure they had put on Karyu for him to 'settle down' with what they would call a 'real job' was also on the increase._

_Unlike the open, accepting atmosphere within Hizumi's family, Karyu rarely mentioned what was going on within his parent's household in the recent period, the blond man would only let a few comments slip here and there. Picking up the hint, Hizumi chose not to bring up any topic which was related to his best friend's family relation in their conversations._

_For a long time Hizumi didn't know what to say, he could only sit next to his best friend. But this time he couldn't think of anything to say to light his friend's mood._

_"Do you know what they had said?" Suddenly a bitter laughter escaped from Karyu's throat. "They said I won't make it. I'm foolish to think I'd ever get a shoot at it."_

_Hizumi's heart sank, these were harsh words to say even from a pair of worrying parents. Karyu must have bottled it up all along for Hizumi didn't recall his friend acting any differently before. It had taken consuming so many cans of beer for Karyu to express his feeling..._

_"Who am I kidding anyway, Hizu." Covering his eyes with his palm, Karyu whispered in a tired voice. "Maybe they are right. I'm just not...good enough."_

_Hizumi's eyes widened in shock, he exclaimed instantly. "Don't say that! You're going to be okay!"_

_He wished Karyu would turn and look at him so he could assure the blond everything would be okay, but Karyu was still refusing to face anyone. Instead the taller man buried his head into his laps, as if it had became too difficult for him to face the outside world._

_"Let's go." Hizumi sighed again._

_He did his best to gather the empty cans around and threw them into a trash bin nearby, then went back to Karyu, finding his friend now openly talking to himself. it wasn't a good sign, Karyu must have drank more beer than he had realized._

_"You're always so good to me Hizu..." Karyu murmured under his breath as Hizumi tugged him to stand up._

_"I'll get you to my place first." The shorter man stated, supporting Karyu as best he could with an arm wrapped around the latter's shoulders. He thought it wouldn't do the blond man any good if he returned him back to his parents' house, so taking Karyu back to his place seemed to be the only choice left._

_"You drank too much, and you're feeling sorry for yourself, for a moment. Things will get better tomorrow."_

_"Stop saying that! It wouldn't get any better!" A drunk Karyu stubbornly protested as he followed Hizumi's lead with unsteady steps._

_"I know how it feels like, buddy. " Hizumi reasoned with the drunk man. "But you will feel much better when you wake up tomorrow."_

_He knew his statement was probably untrue, Karyu would most likely wake up with a bitch of a hangover in the next morning; still Hizumi didn't have the heart to point this out to his friend right now._

_"You're too good..." Karyu hiccuped. "But sometime even you can't save me, do you know that?"_

_Hizumi couldn't think of any reply._

_Eventually they arrived back to Hizumi's, luckily his parents were already asleep by then; and Karyu had gone very quiet and made no attempt to resist when the shorter man guided him to go upstairs, back to Hizumi's own bedroom. Then the brown haired man tucked his friend to bed without further mischief. It wasn't long before Karyu eventually fell asleep. Hizumi knew he should retreat, went downstairs to prepare himself for a night on the sofa, still he had remained sitting next to the bed and looked down at his friend for a long time._

_What was going on in Karyu's mind? Hizumi wished he could find out, he would always be there to support Karyu, but would the blond be willing to share his worry and fear to him, like he once used to? Would his help be enough?_

_When the next day arrived, the brown haired man found out Karyu did wake up with a terrible hangover, but he never mentioned the desperate conversations between them ever again afterward._

__

to be continued.

A long delayed update, what do you think?


	12. Human clad Monsters part 11

Part 11

After leaving the abandoned warehouse, Giru wandered off into the night alone, walking aimlessly from one street to another. 

He was so pissed off by Kohta and Takeo, even more than usual. Theoretically they were three of a kind,  but sometime the dark haired man couldn't even stand those two.

Screw them! He thought to himself, feeling upset that he couldn't rip them from limb to limb the way he saw fit.

It wasn't like he lacked the capability to do this, nor was he too compassionate a person so he had to hold himself back. He wasn't afraid of them if they went one-on-one, but he knew he was no match against the two of them in a combat of one against two. 

Yes, these two were practically an alliance of a sort, though there was still Kirito in their little club, but Giru had long learnt that the dark man wouldn't bother himself with the...interpersonal affairs within the group, therefore seeking aid from the man would be more or less pointless.

After so long, Kirito was still a mystery to him, Giru thought to himself, though he suspected both Kohta and Takeo were none the wiser when it came to the enigmatic man. Outwardly Kirito was no different from them, he did whatever he pleased, took whatever he desired, had fun in whatever method he saw fit, did harm and maim when he should, regardless of the circumstances. But there was still one major difference between them: when Kirito did what he felt like, no one was there to question him or stop him from doing those things, no one dared.

So far, Kirito was the only one he didn't ever try to cross. If there was a day for Kirito to want the three of them to be destroyed, he might very well go ahead, just for the mere reason that he _could_ do this. It was hardly a secret that Kirito did not care so much about his companions, his compassion for them was but little. For most of the time Kirito didn't seem to even care. It was quite difficult to tell if the dark man ever cared for anything or anyone at all. 

Although they sort of worked as a group, still the others couldn't really control him. 

The dark haired man shivered at the thought, even though he didn't always wanted to admit the fact, still he knew fully well who was in charge in their little gang of four, it was part of his animal instinct to bow down to a stronger, deadlier predator, like there was a secret code hidden deep within his marrow. 

On top of it all, Kirito was also the one who _changed_ him, it was something he couldn't just overlook. 

Regardless of whether the man was aware of it or not, he did give Giru a new life, showed him a world beyond his imagination, his widest dreams.  

His life from _before_ was all blurry to him. He could only vaguely recalled parts of his difficult childhood in bitter poverty, his teenage period which was filled with nothing but failures and disappointment. Defeats and pain eventually turned into bitterness and hatred; hatred toward this world, the people around him and ever himself. He didn't remember ever feeling loved for once, not even from those people who were supposed to love him. No one cared for him and he cared for no one in return.

It was not a surprise he later joined the local gang, and the road to criminal activities and gang fights was a quick one to travel. To him joining the gang was a mean for survival, it was a way of life, but it didn't give him much satisfaction nor excitement. Life as a young gangster at the bottom of the food-chains wasn't as easy nor heroic as those movies would have you believe. For the whole time Giru still felt as if he was trapped, suffocated by his own incapability to become stronger and the burden of his life, he was still not free.

During one of the gang fights Giru was fatally stabbed and was left for death by his fellow 'comrades'. As he bled out on the  dirty road alone in the dead of the night, he believed it would be the end of his miserable, pointless life. 

But he was wrong.

Giru couldn't recall exactly what had happened, still he vaguely remembered himself lying in a pool of his own blood, he felt cold due to the massive among of blood loss; his mind went blurry and dysfunctional due to his injure. 

In the haze of the mind blowing pain, Giru saw a shadowy figure towered over him. He struggled to open his eyes wider, trying to see who was there. He looked up in great difficulty, only to find a pair of eerily bright dark eyes peered down at him.

He should have been afraid,  but at this point he was too far gone to care about a strange, thick dark shadow hovering above him. The shadowy form looked weirdly solid to him, as if it was a real form made of shades, towering over him.

_What do you want?_

Giru would have asked if he still had enough strength left, still much to his surprise, he swore he could see--- _sense_ , among the dimness of the surrounding that, the shadowy figure was _smirking_ at him, as though he had heard his unspoken question, and found it amusing.

He couldn't do nothing as the shadow creeping in on him, ready to strike like a snake.

What had happened to him after this point was merely _unspeakable_ , a nightmare came true; even to Giru's standard. All he could recall was the flash of sharp pointy claws, fangs, the desperate yet brief struggle, the wet sound of blood dropping. For most of the time afterward, the dark haired man didn't even want to recall it.

Simply put, after being stabbed and left to bleed out to death that night, he received yet one powerful shove which knocked him straight down to Hell.

Yes, to Hell he had fallen...

Only to crawl right back up to the world of living again.

And returned he did,  transformed into an entirely different creature.

Yes, he had _changed_. Now he could fully look after himself. He now need no protection. People should fear him and take orders from him, not the other way around.

He was powerful, he could do whatever he wanted. No one could stop him. At least it was when he faced those...other people. People, nameless humble little creatures that they were, filled with self-importance and other nonsense, but in the end they were just _preys_.

It was the first thing the others had taught him. Other people who weren't their own kind, were simply preys. They could be tossed aside once they were done consuming them.

That probably was one of the reasons why he found Kohta's scolding unacceptable, the blond one was always going on about being more _careful_ , about lying low, about having to cover up their trails with care.

Why must they worry about those unimportant things, when they should be above all these?

Giru didn't want to be like them......he wanted to be like Kirito. The dark man was _a force of nature_ at his own right, his lack of concern and affection had made him so... _pure_. Giru still couldn't figure how the man had managed to achieve this, what had made him different from the others; that was a mystery he would want to solve. 

The black haired man turned a corner, only to find a lone passerby walking ahead of him. 

The passerby in question seemed to be a man, heavily built with board shoulders, even from a distance Giru could almost see thick muscles moving under the man's clothes as he walked. The man stood tall, not once did he look over his shoulder as he walked alone on the empty street. So confident he was of his ability to protect himself. Giru recognized the presence of power wrapping so thickly around the man who was still walking with his back to him. He guessed the man was either a gangster, an off-duty cop or a bodyguard--in another word, a _professional_ who was probably no stranger to combat.  

On the surface, it would be suicide for Giru, who was far slimmer and shorter in build, who was armed with nothing but his slightly muscled arms, to challenge such a giant. 

The dark haired youth licked his lips with anticipation. 

He scanned his surrounding, making sure no one was there to peer, that was his chance. He didn't really need to feed, but the idea of letting himself run wild, unleashing anger and frustration seemed to be appealing.

He began to walk faster, stalking his prey. He tuned his steps to the same rhythm of his victim's, he reached out to sense the other man, feeling the man's breath, his heartbeat. 

The bigger man was only a few steps ahead of him now. Giru had so successfully veiled his own presence that his prey never suspected a thing, he still didn't look back. 

Moving smoothly forward, he crept toward the lone figure, when the other was within reach,  he quietly reached out an arm, and placed a firm grip on the lone person's shoulder.

to be continued.

What do you think?


	13. Human clad Monsters part 12 Memories

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Note 3: I hope you don't mind a totally fictional rock band being mentioned in this chapter*

Part 12

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_In spring, Hizumi had been among the first to be invited to Karyu's first public performance with the band he had joined a few months back. Tonight was when the performance would take place, and the brown haired man would not miss it for anything else since it would the first time he listened to this newly formed band. Also it had been a while since Karyu's previous band untimely broken up, so he was excited to see how Karyu would work with his new bandmates, what kind of chemistry would sparkle between this group._

_At dusk, the young graphic designer left his workplace as soon as he could and went straight to the train station in order to meet with Zero, a long time friend of Karyu's and himself. Working for a music magazine as a reporter, Zero was a young man with a cheerful, bright character, who was well adored by those around him, and the black haired man had agreed to join Hizumi so they could attend their friend's performance together._

_Once arrived at the station, he did not have to wait long before Zero showed up, soon enough they were making their way to the live house. They chatted, exchanging some news about one another on their way to the live house in question, and updated each other with the interesting events they had encountered with the recent period._

_The pair arrived to their destination about an hour before the performance was supposed to start. They looked up to the small billboard at the entrance to check out details for tonight's performance. They found there were also a handful of other bands performing in the same event, each band was scheduled to play not more than five songs. Karyu and his bandmates were issued in the lineup to be the fourth group to perform._

_Later, Hizumi and Zero were allowed to go into a tiny room at the backstage to find their friend. There were musicians from different bands roaming about, eating from their lunchboxes, smoking, adjusting their outfits, doing their makeup or tuning their instruments. Finally they were able to find Karyu at the end of the hallway._

_The blond guitarist greeted his two friends warmly when he saw them, then introduced the two to meet with his fellow band members. They chatted together for a while before the two excused themselves from the backstage so the band could focused on preparing for their upcoming performance._

_Hizumi noted that Karyu seemed so happy tonight, happier than he had been for a long time, and for that he was glad. Although he didn't know much about his other band members still all of them seemed nice and capable, he had faith in Karyu and his bandmates._

_After leaving backstage, the brown head followed Zero to the outside to grab some snacks before going back to the live house. The hall was half full when they arrived, a crowd gathered before the small stage at the front, making small talk among themselves, waiting for their favorite bands to start their performance._

_The pair stayed among the crowd to wait for the joined performance to begin, they listened to other bands playing till finally it was time for Karyu's band to take the stage._

_His heart raced with anticipation as the band members stepped up to the small stage with instruments in their hands, and took their place one by one. Meanwhile a polite-sounding round of applauding ran around the audience, then it died down as limelight began to flash once again as the band started playing the first song._

_In order to show their support, Zero and Hizumi took turn cheering the band during their performance._

_Hizumi experienced the performance with a smile always on his face, his eyes barely left Karyu's tall figure for the whole time. He was glad his friend's skill seemed to become even better than he remembered. Though Karyu dominated most of his attention, still he noticed how nice the band had performed when they worked together, but the sparkles between the band members were weaker than Hizumi had anticipated, the performance was a decent one, Hizumi also noted that the vocalist did his best to make his singing passionate, but still not quite getting there; the brown haired man didn't mind that, and no one else seemed to mind neither when the cheering from the crowd grew louder as the band played their second song._

_From that point onward everything ran smoothly, the audience was getting more responsive, the musicians seemed to be enjoying their performance, and the songs they played were powerful and energized. Hizumi felt happy for his best friend, he seemed to have joined a good team._

_Finally they band started their next and final song, something seemed to click within his mind. To him it didn't feel like it was a new song from a newly formed band, this song sounded different from their other songs, somehow Hizumi found the song Karyu's band was playing sounded strangely familiar._

_At the corners of his eyes, he caught sight of Zero turning toward him as if the latter had something to say, so he leaned his head closer to the black haired man._

_"They're covering, right?" Over the music, Zero shout next to his ear._

_Zero's words rang a bell. Yes, the song sounded familiar because unlike the other previously performed songs, they actually had heard this one before. It was a covered song by another band._

_Well, not just another rock bands. They had listened to other bands which played before Karyu and company playing different covered songs but this time it felt entirely different. Now the opening part of the song had came to an end, the vocalist began to sing the first few lines. Those familiar lyrics resurfaced from Hizumi's memory, though the vocalist's singing was entirely different from the haunting male voice from what he had remembered had once been listening to._

_Hizumi even managed to remember the song's title and the name of the original band which created the track._

_It was a track by an old band called_ Destruction Impulse. _Hizumi remembered listening to their tacks in Karyu's bedroom when the two of them hanged out back in those old days. He also remembered Karyu was always so excited and cheerful when he mentioned this legendary band though the brown head didn't share the same level of fondness. It was a complete surprise to find Karyu playing a song from this particular band, with his band members. He was surprised not only because songs from Destruction Impulse were known to be quite a challenge to perform, but also because of the band's_ reputation _._

_If his memory still served him right, Destruction Impulse was an old underground rock band from almost 30 years ago, their name was largely unheard of by the general public. Not much was known about them as a whole, not even basic information such as the band members' names. People only knew that the band became inactive almost right after the release of their very first album. The reason of their disbandment was also an unknown.Though long after their disbandment, their only album somehow attracted a fiery underground cult following among small group of music admirers. The remaining copies of their first album had been hotly sought after by fans, the same went for what little left of the band's photos, posters and a few other relative items. The band's name had been passed down among the circle of music fans and musicians through the years. Although Destruction Impulse had received little to none attention when they were active, ironically their flame only seemed to grow due to the mysterious nature of the band and its equally mysterious and fearful rumors which surrounding the band._

_Rumors had it that a number of fans had committed suicide after listening to Destruction Impulse's album, the music was still playing when the victims' bodies were discovered. It was also famously rumored that no one knew what had become of the band's members themselves, and their agent was found cruelly murdered not long after the disbandment._

_Those were dark, frightening rumors of death and disappearance which cycled among music lovers, but nothing had ever been clarified. The rumors only became darker, more ominous as they traveled through wind and mouths. After all, who didn't love some dark and scary stories if they would only remain in this state: smoke and mirror, stories to fright yourself and your friends and, nothing more._

_Aside from those half truths and rumors, there was one thing which could be certain about this mysterious band: their music was truly_ terrific _, there was always something darkly beautiful, strong and addictive in their music. You couldn't help but to be drawn to the murky, depressing world described by the elegantly written lyrics. There was something poisonous and dangerous about the male vocalist's singing as he screamed, moaned, whispered, groaned through all of the songs. It was unhealthy and unwholesome in the most indescribable kind of way._

_Of course it sounded and felt different for Hizumi to listen to Karyu's band covering song by Destruction Impulse. For starters, the vocalist didn't sound anything like the haunting male voice which belonged to Destruction Impulse's mysterious vocalist from so long ago. It was almost a relief he didn't sing in the same way, otherwise it would be too much for the brown haired man to bear. He could hardly lie to himself that Destruction Impulse's music tended to make him feel a little uneasy, even though he could hardly pinpoint why would he feel this way._

_His train of thoughts was broken when a girl accidentally bumped into him, he looked up only to realize the crowd had became more active, many people were swinging, waving their hands along the music with so much more excitement and optimism than before._

_Perhaps Karyu and his bandmates had made a wise move by choosing a Destructive Impulse's song to cover, since the audience was reacting so well to it.  But Hizumi felt worry seeping slowly across his heart, just like every time he heard Karyu played those songs in those old days._

_He must be so deep in his own thoughts that he had failed to notice the performance coming to an end, plus Zero was staring at him in bewilderment._

_"Hey, let's get out and wait for them to finish picking up." Eventually Hizumi managed to shrug and talked to his friend as usual. "Karyu said there'll be a gathering after they're finished!"_

_Zero nodded, his friend's previous strange space-out was forgotten quickly. In no time at all the two were making their way outside._

_It was nearly past midnight when Karyu and the others finished changing and picking up. The band members, along with Zero and Hizumi and the other members' own friends, had decided to go to a pub nearby for a small celebration._

_Everything from this point onward became a bit of a blur to Hizumi, he recalled sitting down with the rest of the others, drinks were passed around, words of congratulation had been cheerfully exchanged. The performance had gone off smoother than the band had ever predicted and everyone was in good mood for it. Hizumi sat between Zero and Karyu, he was having a good time just by sitting there to share his friends' happiness._

_Later on, Zero excused himself from the group to go outside to smoke, it didn't take long before the brown haired designer decided to join him._

_The two stood before the pub, making small talk while smoking. Naturally they went back to discuss tonight's performance, it was when Zero unexpectedly came up with the cover song they played, and the topic about the infamous band from the past surfaced._

_"You know the covered-song Karyu and Co. played for tonight?"_

_"Yes." Hizumi nodded. "It's called_ Chaotic Bell _. If my memory still serves me right."_

_A chuckle could be heard from the black haired reporter. "Oh yes, by that old underground band, what's their name? De......Destructive Impulse?"_

_Hizumi nodded without saying anything in reply. He wasn't surprised to learn Zero also had heard about this band, since the black haired man worked for a music magazine, but he didn't exactly want to linger on that subject._

_However, Zero seemed to have another idea. "Music groups come and go in these days as quickly as shooting stars, you know what I mean? But this creepy old band is still being remembered. Strange isn't it?"_

_Hizumi nodded again, making some 'Huhh' sound at the back of his throat in agreement. "There are so many rumors about those 'old bands' as you had put them..."_

_"Haha, those mysterious death and Destruction Impulse stories, perfect material for urban legends, right?" Zero's voice was thick after consuming so much alcohol. "The infamous 'cursed' band."_

_"Yeah." Exhaling another gust of cigarette smoke, Hizumi teasingly added. "Are you telling me you of all people believe in those nonsense about the 'curse'?"_

_Though Hizumi would not deny there was something unsettling and ominous about the band they were discussing, still he never gave the claim about the band being 'cursed' much of a thought. Wasn't the music industry always filled with tales of untimely death, lives cut short, sex and violence, even rumors about Satanists and Black Art, like the famous rumors concerning Robert Johnson and the Devil? Why would the stories about Destruction Impulse be any different? After all, who didn't love some dark and scary stories if they would only remain in this state: smoke and mirror, stories to fright yourself and your friends with and nothing more._

_"You know I'm better than this!" Zero waved his hands, making a show of his displease. "It just happens that I met an old guy, who claimed he was once familiar with that Destruction Impulse band..."_

_"What?" Hizumi's eyes widened in shock. He didn't expect anyone would claim to know, or possess first hand information about this infamous band which had weirdly achieved a state as a cult icon._

_"This old man was always going on about this band, all the time. That's really spooky. " Zero whispered as if it was an afterthought._

_"What did he say?" Part of him wanted to end this conversation, but eventually curiosity won over._

_Zero paused with a frown knotted between his eyebrows, before saying. "Just weird stuff. And I don't seem to remember exactly what did he say--"_

_"You know what, " The brown haired man found himself speaking before he could stop himself. "If you hear more from the old man, would you mind telling me about what he may tell you?"_

_"Sure, why not?" The black haired reporter shrugged casually. "Some spooky old tales from the past, it's just what we need, isn't it? Maybe I can even do an article based on it!"_

_Both of them laughed at the remark, and headed back to the pub._

_It was truly a night worthwhile of celebration, their friends were rejoiced in their first small successes, everyone was happy. What could go wrong?_

_Two months later, Karyu's band broke up._

to be continued.


End file.
